NEWTON, Mass. — A judge said Monday that a man charged in a gruesome triple homicide in Newton is not competent to stand trial at this time, and she ordered him to remain housed at a state facility for men with mental illness.
Christopher Ferguson, 41, of Newton, is charged with killing Gilda D’Amore, 73, Bruno D’Amore, 74, and Lucia Arpino, who were found dead on June 25 at a home on Broadway Street after the couple failed to show up for services at Our Lady Help of Christians Church, prosecutors said.
Judge Jennifer Queally ordered Ferguson to remain housed at the Bridgewater State Hospital, after he was determined to be incompetent, she said during a Newton District Court hearing via Zoom on Monday.
Officers responding to a 911 call placed by a friend of the couple around 10:15 a.m. on Sunday, June 25 found all three of the victims suffering from apparent stab wounds and blunt-force trauma inside their home at 49 Broadway St., according to Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan.
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There were obvious signs of forced entry into the home on Broadway, including broken glass and missing screens from the basement windows, according to police. Ryan earlier said that there were also obvious signs of struggle in one of the bedrooms, including broken furniture and a crystal paperweight covered in blood.
All three victims were pronounced dead minutes after officers arrived at the scene. Authorities noted that Arpino still had a knife “embedded in her body.”
DA: 41-year-old man arrested in connection to brutal stabbing deaths of Newton family
A subsequent sweep of the home revealed bloody, bare footprints on the hallway floor between the bedroom and kitchen, leading in the direction of an exterior door, forensics investigators said. Blood droplets and fingerprints were also lifted from the scene.
Gilda D’Amore is said to have suffered over 30 stab and blunt force trauma injuries, primarily to the upper part of her body and head.
Man charged in Newton triple homicide had prior run-in with law enforcement, documents show
Ferguson has had at least one previous encounter with law enforcement, an assault and battery arrest in 2005.
The D’Amores were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary on the weekend they were killed.
Ferguson is due back for a court status hearing on Oct. 10.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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